Introduction to LS-Prepost

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Introduction to LS-PrePost Quanqing Yan, Philip Ho, LSTC 2018 Table of Contents SECTION WORKSHOPS Overview - General Operations Workshop 1 Mesh Generation Workshop 2 Pre-Processing Workshop 3-4-5 Post-Processing Workshop 6 Configuration Files -

. LS-PrePost is an advanced pre and post-processor designed specifically for LS-DYNA . LS-PrePost is developed for Windows and Linux . LS-PrePost is Free . Core Functionality • Full support of LS-DYNA keyword files • Full support of LS-DYNA results files • Robust handling of geometry data (new CAD engine) • Pre-processing (meshing, model clean-up, entity creation) • Post-processing (animation, fringe plotting, curve plotting)

. Official Website • http://www.lstc.com/lspp . User Group • http://groups.google.com/group/ls-prepost . Latest Release Version: • http://ftp.lstc.com/anonymous/outgoing/lsprepost/4.5/ • ftp://ftp.lstc.com/outgoing/lsprepost/4.5/ . Beta Version: • http://ftp.lstc.com/anonymous/outgoing/lsprepost/dev . Training notes: • ftp://ftp.lstc.com/outgoing/qyan/Class

Menus File management & preferences Floting Toolbar Movable semitransparent Feature Tree Tree list of assembly and parts Right Toolbar Access to pre and post-processing tools

Graphics Viewport

Command Line Bottom Toolbar Type in operation command Model rendering controls

Message window Prompt message (Double click for popup)

. Input (partial list) • FEM: LS-DYNA Keyword, Nastran, I-DEAS Universal, PAM-CRASH, RADIOSS, ABAQUS • CAD: IGES, STEP • ASCII: glstat, matsum, etc… • Binary: d3plot, binout, etc… . Output (partial list) • FEM: LS-DYNA Keyword, Nastran, STL • Image: PNG, TIFF, BMP, GIF, JPG, PostScript • Movie: AVI, MPEG, Animated GIF, JPEG • XY Data: CRV, CSV, XML • Other: Post.db, Project File

. Dynamic Model Operation • Rotate: Shift + Left-click • Translate: Shift + Middle-click • Zoom: Shift + Right-click/Scroll-wheel (Using Ctrl instead of Shift for edge mode) . Graphics Selection • Pick (single): Left Click • Area (rectangle): Left-click + Drag • Poly (polygon): Left-click at corners / Right-click to finish . List Selection • Multi-Select: Left-click + Drag / Ctrl + Left-click . Mouse over controls for status bar help comments

. New – Launch a new session of LS-PrePost, all model/data will be closed (only in version 4.0 and later) . Open – Open file (new model created for each file opened) . Import – Import file (adds keyword data to current model) . Recent – Open recent files (stored in /user/.lspp_recent) . Save – Over-write current Keyword or Project file . Save As – Save any of the following file formats using advanced options: Keyword, Active Keyword (visible data), Project, Post.db (condensed d3plot data), Geometry, Keyword and Project (using same file name) . Update – Load new d3plots for run in progress . Run LS-DYNA – pop up LS-DYNA job submission dialog, currently only limited to the same local machine LS-PrePost is running . Print... – Launch printing interface (send to printer or image file) . Movie... – Launch movie generation interface . Exit – Exit LS-PrePost . Save and Exit – Save data to current file and exit LS-PrePost

. View Model Info – Launch model information interface . View Memory Info – Launch memory usage interface . View Message Info – Launch keyword reader message interface . Display Ruler – Launch ruler interface . Set Keyword Title – Launch title interface . Swap Byte On Title – Swap byte order for title . Start Recording Commands – Start/stop recording macro commands . Launch Macro Interface – Launch Macro interface . Manage Command File – Launch command file interface . Execute System Call – Launch system call interface . Keyword File Separate – Separate a single keyword file into multiple files based on *KEYWORD title

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 10 View Menu . Full Screen (Esc to Exit) – Show graphics area in full screen mode . Background – Set background style (plain, faded, or image) . Geometry Shade – Set geometry rendering style . Element Shade – Set element rendering style . All Element/Geometry – Show all elements/geometry . Ref Geometry – Show reference geometry . Points/Curves/Surfaces – Show points/curves/surfaces . Toolbar – Hide/display toolbars, set text/icon mode, and set font size . Local Axes – Toggle between global/local . Beam Prism – Toggle between line/prism . Smooth Fringe Color – Enable smooth contours (when in fringe mode) . Keep Zout Orientation – Maintain orientation when zooming out . Show Deleted Nodes – Display deleted nodes when viewing results . Show Deleted Elements – Display deleted elements when viewing results . Result On Screen – Display results on screen when Ident > Show Results is active (when in fringe mode) . Smooth Shade – Use smooth shading . Record Message – Write messages to lspost.msg . Show Mid-Side Nodes – for 10-node Tetrahedron element

. Reference Geometry – Access tools for creating and editing reference geometry (Axis, Plane, Coordinate System, and Point) . Curve – Access tools for creating and editing curves (Point, Line, Circle, Circular Arc, Ellipse, Elliptical Arc, BSpline Curve, Helix, Composite Curve, Break Curve, Merge Curve, Bridge Edge, Smooth Curve, Middle Curve, Morphing Curve, Fillet Curve) . Surface – Access tools for creating and editing surfaces (Plane, Cylinder, Cone, Sphere, Torus, Fill Plane, Extrude, Revolve, Sweep, Loft, N-Side Surface, Patch Surface, Bridge Two Faces, Combine Faces, Fit From Points/Mesh, Middle Surface, Surface Morphing) . Solid – Access tools for creating and editing solids (Box, Cylinder, Cone, Sphere, Torus, Extrude, Revolve, Sweep, Loft, Fillet, Chamfer, Draft, Thicken, Wedge, Boolean) . Geometry Tools – Access other geometry tools (Delete Face, Extend Curve, Extend Face, Intersection, Offset, Project, Replace Face, Stitch Faces, Trim Transform, Copy Entity, Management, Heal, Topology Simplify, Measure)

. Element and Mesh – Access mesh creation tools (Shape Mesher, Auto Mesher, Solid Mesher, Block Mesher, N-Line Mesher, Tetrahedral Mesher, Blank Mesher, Element Generation, Node Editing, Element, Editing, Mass Trimming, Spot Welding, SPH Generation) . Model and Part – Access model and part tools (Assembly and Select Part, Keyword Manager, Create Entity, Display Entity, Reference Check, Renumber, Section Plane, Model Selection, Subsystem Manager, Group, View, Part Color, Appearance, Annotation, Split Window, Explode, Lighting Setup) . Element Tools – Access element tools (Identify, Find, Blank, Move or Copy, Offset, Transform, Normals, Detach, Measure, Morph, Smooth, Part Trim, Part Travel) . Post – Access post-processing tools (Fringe Component, Fringe Range, History, XY Plot, ASCII, Binary Output, Follow, Trace, State, Particle, Circle Grid, Chain Model, FLD, Output, Setting, Vector) . Favorites – Customizable toolbar (see Setting → Toolbar Manager)

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 14 Setting Menu . Current Subsystem ID – Set current subsystem ID . Current Working Directory – Set current working directory . General Settings – Set general parameters . Post Settings – Set post processing parameters . Configuration Settings – Set configuration settings . Toolbar Manager – Customize toolbars

. Document – View LS-PrePost documentation . Tutorial – View LS-PrePost tutorials . Will need to download the Help and Tutorial documents from LSTC’s ftp site the first time these documents are being accessed . Old to New – View mapping between old (v2.4) and new (v3.0+) GUI . Release Notes – View release notes . Check for Update – Check server for newer version of LS-PrePost . About LS-PrePost – View version info

Opti Toggle Title, Legend, Min-Max, Time Stamp, Triad, Clear Clear all picked or highlighted information Background Color, Mesh Color, Performance Stats on/off, AutCen Automatically center model to fit within window Feature Tree, ISO View and Animation Play ZoIn Zoom in, click and drag to draw a box HidEle Display elements with hidden lines removed Zout Zoom out to previous zoom position ShaEle Display elements in shaded mode with mesh lines off Pcen Pick node as new center point for model rotation VieEle Display elements in plain color mode VCrd View coordinate systems WirEle Display elements in wireframe mode Top Choose Top, Bottom, Front, Back, Right, or Left view Feat Display elements in feature line mode (default angle=30°) Angle Left-click to reverse rotation direction Edge Display elements in edge line mode Right-click to modify rotation angle Grid Display each nodal point as a colored pixel Rotate Left-click to rotate about axis shown Mesh Toggle element mesh on/off Right-click to switch rotation axis (X/Y/Z) Shrink Draw elements in shrunken mode (default=0.85) Persp Toggle Parallel/Perspective view mode Section Display section view with plane selected Home Restore default view and fit model Frin Toggle Fringe/Line-contours/Iso-surfaces ActAll Restore all entities to be active Unref Toggle unreferenced nodes on/off BacCol Toggle background color black/white (Plain background mode only) EdgGeo Display geometry in shaded mode with edges on Anim Display animation controls or start/stop animation ShaGeo Display geometry in shaded mode with edges off SelPart Launch Assembly and Select Part interface WirGeo Display geometry in wireframe mode ResPart Restore the last removed part (Shift+R) ShfCtr Toggle Off/Shift/Ctrl (for one-handed rotate/pan/zoom) Plot Open XY plot management interface

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 18 FEM General Selection Pick Select a single entity ID Enter Ids of the entity to be selected into Area Select using a rectangular window the text box for highlighting Type When selecting element, choose Poly Select using an irregular polygon element type to be selected Sel1 Pick 1 entity (only 1 will be in buffer) Label selection put a label on the selected Sphe Select entities within a sphere entities Box Select entities within a box Prop Propagate selection (pick seed) Prox Select entities within proximity to a part Adap Propagate across adaptive elements Circ Select entities within a circle Ang Feature angle for propagation to stop Frin Select entities within a fringe plot range Plan Select entities within a plane

In Select entities inside Area/Poly Out Select entities outside Area/Poly Add Add entities to a selection set Rm Remove entities to a selection set

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 19 FEM General Selection Adjacent Select adjacent elements Attach Select attached elements Clear Clear selection Save Save selection to buffer or to file Load Load selection from buffer or from file Deselect Undo last selection Whole Select all entities in model ByNode Select nodes Visible Select all visible entities ByElem Select elements Reverse Reverse selection ByPart Select parts BySet Set based selection ByEdge Edge based selection ByPath Select first and last along a path BySegm Select segments BySurf Select surface (geometry)

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 20 Model → Assembly and Select Part Purpose: turn parts on/off (on=“active”) . Parts listed by PID and name (or element type) . Top drop-down menu selects current model . Parts can be turned on/off by element type . Use General selection to select parts . Active parts can be Saved/Loaded from buffers (via Save button in General selection) . Selected displays active parts only in list . Info button launches Part Information interface for active parts . SortBy button launches Part Sort interface

Right click on part to show the part information and statistics

Keep mouse pressed and move to other part to show information dynamically

Keyword data gives more information than post- processing data

Each header can be clicked to sort the IDs of that column

Options to select info to be tabulated

Highlighted parts can be set as active part in the graphics rendering

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 23 Element Tools → Blank Purpose: temporarily hide or “mask” elements . Uses General Selection interface . Entity types: • Node, Element, CNRB, Curve, Surface, Particle . Element types: • Shell, Solid, Beam, TShell, SPH, Mass, Discrete, Seatbelt, Inertia, Nurbs, DiscSph, Any element . UnBlank Part – click to restore partially hidden parts . Auto-Apply – blank automatically (no need to click Apply button) . Auto-Update – update display of solid surfaces and edges automatically (no need to click Update Surf or Update Edge)

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 24 Model → Views Purpose: create views (based on color, appearance, orientation, and active parts) . Create – create a new view . Select – load the selected view . Delete – delete the selected view . Save – save views to a binary file . Load – load views from file

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 25 Model → Appearance Purpose: modify the appearance of parts . Parts can be selected by Single/Area/Polygon . Each selected part will have the selected rendering options applied . Thick – draw shells with true thickness . Sphere – draw solid part nodes as spheres (for EFG) . AllVis – selected rendering options are applied to all active parts . Render buttons are disabled while using Appear interface

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 26 Model → Part Color Purpose: modify part color and transparency . Set/Show colors for parts or other entities (background, text, mesh, labels) . Sky (top), Middle, Ground (bottom) refer to background color (when View > Background > Tri Fade is selected) . Select color from palette or form new color using RBG . Editmap – to assign new color to the color map . Fringe colors can also be changed – select a fringe color, then after the color selection, click Fringe button. . Amap – apply the current color map to part drawing . Rstp – restore transparency of all parts to opaque

Transparency – draw part in transparent mode, transparency factor: . 0.0 fully opaque (once is set to 0.0, need to click part again to turn it into transparent) . 1.0 totally transparent . Pick toggle – pick a part to toggle it from opaque to transparent and vice versa . Pick through – pick through a part to set part that is behind this part

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 28 Model → Lighting Setup Purpose: adjust model and material lighting . Light – adjust model lights • 2 lights are on by default . Front – position (0.0, 0.0, 1.0) . Back – position (0.0, 0.0, -1.0) . Click the Latitude and Longitude to control the light position • Up to 8 more can be activated • The following properties can be adjusted for each . Ambient . Diffuse . Specular . Material – adjust material lighting properties and the Shininess

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 29 Element Tools → Identify Purpose: identify nodes/elements/parts . Uses General Selection interface . Entity types: • Node, Element, Part, Curve, Surface, Particle, constrained nodal rigid body (cnrb) . Element types: • Shell, Solid, Beam, TShell, SPH, Mass, Discrete, Seatbelt, Inertia, Nurbs, DiscSph, Any . Max. number of IDs that can be shown is 12800 . Can key in xyz coordinates to show position . Can show element directions (shell and beam) . Can show orthotropic material directions

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 30 Element Tools → Identify Purpose: identify nodes/elements/parts . Can show node/element results (after fringing in post-processing) . Can show element results at integration points . To show result on screen, go to pull down menu View, and turn on “Results on Screen” . When identifying a very large no. of nodes or elements, make sure to turn off “Echo” and turn on “No ID”, otherwise will take a long time to come back

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 31 Element Tools → Find Purpose: find nodes/elements/parts/Cnrb . Find any element by ID or specified type . Show Only – shows found entity by itself . Highlight – highlights found entity . Neighbors – propagates to neighboring elements . UnblankAll – turns on all elements and parts . UnblankPart – turns on all elements in part that found node/element belongs to

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 32 Model → Groups Purpose: create part groups . Groups are automatically generated for all *SET_PART that exist in the model . Create – create a new group from active parts . Select – load the selected group . Add – add a group to the current display . Subtract – subtract a group from the current display . Save – save groups to an ASCII file . Load – load groups from file (Save and Load effective for presentations) . Or, And, Xor – used for Adding groups . Auto Center – automatically center the selected group

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 33 Model → Explode Purpose: separate (explode) parts for better visualization . Factor – scale factor for parts movement . Direction – direction for part movement . All – explode all parts . Part – explode selected parts only . PtGroup – explode a group of parts (defined using Page 1: Group)

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 34 Model → Annotation Purpose: annotate Graphics and XY-Plot windows . Position – interactively position text . Arrow – add fixed arrow . Nd Arrow – add arrow tied to node location . Move – move annotations . Text size, color, and orientation can be adjusted . Annotations can be saved to / loaded from a file

 Parts on/off  Render buttons (bottom toolbar)  Group, appearance and view  Identify and find  Element blank(mask)  Part color

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 37 Create Position Interface Purpose: define an XYZ location . By picking a position . By picking a node . At an element center . At an edge midpoint . At the average center of nodes or elements . At the center of a circle . New *NODE can be created

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 38 Create Direction Interface Purpose: define a direction . By picking 2 positions . By picking 2 nodes . Along an element edge . Along an element normal . Direction can be rotated about global or local coordinate system . New *DEFINE_VECTOR can be created

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 39 Mesh → Simple Shape Meshing Purpose: mesh basic geometries . Box_Solid, Box_Shell – define min/max coordinates and mesh density . 4N-Shell – define 4 corners and mesh density . Sphere_Solid, Sphere_Shell – define center, radius and mesh density (quarter circle) . Cylinder_Solid, Cylinder_Shell – define center, direction, radius, length and mesh density (if number of elements in circumferential direction is multiple of 4, butterfly mesh will be create) . Circle_Shell – define outer radius, inner radius (if hole is desired), angle (to create an arc), mesh density, and normal direction

. Mesh by Size creates uniformly sized elements . Can be mix of quad and tri element or all tri only . Compute button will give rough estimate of element size . Connect Boundary Nodes will connect with the nodes on existing mesh . Mesh Across Suppressed Edges will ignore edges that is suppressed in the geometry Heal->Edge . Mesh by GPart will create separate LS-DYNA part for each geometry part . Ignore Hole Size, hole size smaller than this value will be ignore and be filled with elements . Merge Tolerance controls nodes being merged when close to each other LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 41 Mesh → Auto Mesher (Variable size) . Mesh by variable size will create mesh that has smaller elements at high curvature area and larger elements on flat surfaces . It is similar to “By Size” method, in general gives better results . 4 parameters control the element size • Max element size • Min element size • Max deviation • Max angle

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 42 Mesh → Auto Mesher (Deviation) . Mesh by Deviation is for tooling in metal forming stamping applications . Deviation mode creates small elements on curved surfaces and large elements on flat surfaces . 4 parameters control the element size • Max element size • Min element size • Max deviation • Max angle

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 43 Mesh → Auto Mesher (Remesh) . Remesh mode allows user to remesh part of the model . Options to delete the original elements and connect to the nodes on the existing mesh

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 44 Mesh → N-Line Mesher Purpose: create mesh from 2/3/4 lines . 2 Line Shell – create mesh between 2 lines . 3 Line Shell – create mesh between 3 lines . 4 Line Shell – create mesh between 4 lines • Enter number of elements on each edge • Or enter element size • Or use points on lines to create elements . Line Sweep – sweep one line along another line

. Solid meshing by blocks . Uses cut & dice method followed by sweeping

Define cutting planes on geometry

Cut and trim into small blocks

Sweep block faces to form hex elements

LS-PrePost Intro | November , 2012 ©2012 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 46 Mesh → Tetrahedron Mesher Purpose: create 4-node solid elements (tetrahedron) inside an enclosed shell volume . Pick Skin Parts – shell parts that form a water tight enclosure, multiple parts are allowed as long as each part form the enclosure . Requirement: skin normal must be aligned . Skin can be re-meshed to give better solid tetrahedron mesh . Pick Skin Geometry – surface geometry can be used instead of shell part, LSPP will first create shell mesh internally, element size is needed for shell meshing . 10-node tets can also be created . Created Solid mesh can be translated in space

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 47 Mesh → Element Generation (Beam) Purpose: create beam elements . On an edge . On a curve . By dragging nodes . By spinning nodes . Along shell diagonals

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 48 Mesh → Element Generation (Shell) Purpose – To create shell elements from: . Solid Surface - On all outer surfaces of a solid . Solid Face - On individual solid faces . Edge Drag - By dragging an edge . Edge Spin - By spinning an edge . Edge Extend - By extending an edge . Curve Drag - By dragging a curve . Curve Spin - By spinning a curve (geometry curve) . Segment Set – Create shell element from segment set . Fill Holes - By filling holes . 4Nodesto8Nodes – Create 8-node shell element . Helix – Create helix shell loop . Wrap – Wrap over open parts . Solid/Tshell Midplane – Create shell from a single layer solid part at the mid-plane of the solid part

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 49 Mesh → Element Generation (Solid) Purpose: create solid elements . Solid Face Drage – Create another solid By dragging a solid face . Solid Face Offset - By offsetting solid face . Solid Face Spin - By spinning solid face . Shell Drag – By dragging a shell element . Shell Offset – By offsetting a shell element . Shell Spin – By spinning a shell element . Shell Thickness – Apply the thickness of shell . Two Shell Sets – Take 2 sets of shells to form solid between them (must have identical mesh connectivity) . Shell Sweep – Sweep shell element along a curve . Tet4 to Tet10 – Change 4-node tet to 10-node tet . Hex to Tet4 – Convert hexahedron into 4-node tetrahedron . Helix – Create helix form of solid elements

 Shape mesh  N-line mesh  Auto mesh  Solid mesh

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 52 Element Tool → Element Editing Purpose: modify an existing mesh by editing elements . Element Editing Tools • Check (quality) • Create (beam, shell, tetra, penta, hexa, discrete) • Delete • Split / Merge • Modify (thickness) • Direction (change material direction for orthotropic materials) • Composite (special operation to model composite laminated shell elements, see tutorial no. 4 in the model section) • Align (re-orient element connectivity according to a seed element)

. Shell elements can be split into quads or tris . Constrain Adaptive button – If checked (*CONSTRAINED_ADAPTIVITY automatically created when splitting deformable elements) . Click edge of element for splitting into 2 elements, can be perpendicular or parallel to the picked edge . Quad can also be split into Tris . Two quads can be merged into a single quad . Solid elements can also be split

. Align – to re-align the connectivity of a group of shell/solid/tshell elements such that the orientation of the elements will be consistent . Pick the face and edge of a seed element, the picked face will be used as face one, and the picked edge will be used as n1->n2 (first edge) . Show Seed only will show the picked element and allow user to select different face/edge . Show normal, show direction will show element orientation

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 55 Element Tool → Element Editing (Align) Solid/Tshell connectivity re-alignment – to re-align the connectivity of a group of solid/tshell elements such that the orientation of the elements will be consistent

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 56 Element Tool → Node Editing Purpose: modify an existing mesh by editing nodes . Node Editing Tools • Create – to create new nodes, use Advance button to create nodes using different methods • Delete – to delete unreferenced (no other element or entity attached to it) • Replace – to replace one node with another node (merge) or take the center point of the 2 nodes • Align – to align nodes that is close to a line formed by 2 points • Modify (xyz coordinates)

. Two nodes replacement • Merge two nodes into one • Option to choose final position of merged node (Node1, Node2, MidPoint) • Single pick or area select . Multiple (Many) nodes replacement • Merge multiple nodes into one • Option to choose final position of merged node (Center, Node, Position) • General Selection interface used to select nodes

. Define line by picking two points . Select nodes that will be snapped to the line . Option to use Nodes or Point on Element . SpNdEQ – special option to put node in equal spacing when align to the line

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 59 Element Tools → Normals Purpose: show/reverse/align element normal . Apply to Shell/Segment/Tshell/Cohesive/Solid . For Shell element, positive normal has different color than negative normal . General Selection interface can be used to manually show or reverse normal vectors . Automatic alignment (Auto Reverse) can be performed by picking a “seed” element

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 60 Element Tools → Duplicate Nodes show and merge duplicate (coincident) nodes . Tolerance is automatically calculated but can be overridden . Option to keep smaller or larger Node ID . Option to put new node at the xyz centroid of all merged nodes . Show Dup Nodes – will show all the nodes that meet the tolerance criterion . Select Nodes – allow user to select subset of nodes shown . Merge Dup Nodes – will perform the merging of the duplicated Nodes . Option to delete degenerated elements (elements with zero area)

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 61 Element Tools → Detach Purpose: detach elements from an existing mesh . Shell, Beam, Solid, Tshell – detach elements by type . Node – detach all elements connected to a node . Element – Select group of elements to be detached . Edge – Select edges of elements to be detached . Starting NID – Enter starting ID for new nodes

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 62 Element Tools → Measure Purpose: take measurements of various items . Item – list of available measurements • Coordinate – xyz coordinate • Dist N2N – distance between 2 nodes • Dist N2S – distance between a node and a surface • Dist P2P – distance between 2 points • Dist E2E 4Node – distance between edge to edge (4nodes) • Angle 3Node – angle between 3 nodes • Angle 4node – angle between 2 lines formed by 4 nodes • 3Pt Radius – the radius formed by 3 nodes • Area / Volume / Mass / Inertia • Ang Vel – angular velocity • Create Axes – to create a local coordinate systems • Separation – measure distance between two parts in fringe color

. Active Elements Only – for certain quantities (e.g., Area, Volume, Mass, Inertia) . Element/Part/All – measure by element, by part, or all . For shell part volume, beside the volume computed by (area x thickness), it also computes the enclosure volume if the part form a water tight enclosure . Cancel pick – remove last picked entity . Apply – take measurement . Reference Axes – select current reference axes for measurement (define axis using Item: Create Axis) . History – depends on selected item

 Model free edge  Duplicate nodes merge  Node and element Editing  Fill holes  Element normal align  Save a keyword file

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 66 Element Tools → Move/Copy Purpose: move or copy elements from one part to another . Use General Selection interface to select elements . Target part can be a non-existent . Starting IDs for new elements and nodes can be specified when performing a copy

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 67 Element Tools → Offset Purpose: offset shells (always in normal direction) . Offset Distance – distance to offset . Element normals must be aligned before offsetting . Beware of offsetting small radii inward . Elements can be copied while offsetting

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 68 Element Tools→ Transform (Translate) Purpose: translate nodes/elements/parts . Translate Distance – distance to translate . X,Y,Z directions can be in global or local system . N1-N2 – translate in the direction from N1 to N2 . N1-N2-N3 – translate in the direction normal to the plane formed by N1, N2, and N3 . N1-to-N2 – translate using the distance and direction between N1 and N2 . Pt-to-Pt – translate using the distance and direction between P1 and P2 . Sh-Normal – pick a shell element and use its normal as the direction of the translation

. Free Edit – after distance, direction and node selection, user can drag the selected nodes on screen . Copy Elem – copy elements while translating . Copy Node – copy nodes while translating . Transfer – transfer selection to copied elements . Multiple copies can be created . New elements can be placed in a new part ID . User can enter starting element ID for new elements . User can enter starting node ID for new nodes

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 70 Element Tools→ Transform (Rotate) Purpose: rotate nodes/elements/parts . Rot. Angle – angle to rotate in degree . X,Y,Z axes can be in global or local coordinates . N1-N2 – rotate about an axis from N1 to N2 . N1-N2-N3 – rotate about the normal formed by N1, N2, and N3 . Origin of rotation can be a node or XYZ location . Elements/Nodes can be copied while rotating

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 71 Element Tools→ Transform (Reflect) Purpose: reflect nodes/elements/parts . Norm X/Y/Z – reflect along global axes . N1-N2 – reflect along the direction from N1 to N2 . N1-N2-N3 – reflect along the normal formed by N1, N2, and N3 . Origin of reflection can be a node or an XYZ location . Elements/Nodes can be copied while reflecting

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 72 Element Tools→ Transform (Project) Purpose: project nodes and elements . Norm X/Y/Z – project along global axes . N1-N2 – project along the direction from N1 to N2 . N1-N2-N3 – project along the normal formed by N1, N2, and N3 . Can also project To Mesh, To Curve, or To Surface . Point on plane of projection can be a node or an XYZ location . Elements can be copied while projecting

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 73 Element Tools→ Transform (Scale) Purpose: scale nodes/elements/parts . Scale Factor – greater than 1 to enlarge, less than 1 to shrink (when using Scale+) . X,Y,Z – scale in either global or local coordinate system . N1-N2 – scale in direction from N1 to N2 . N1-N2-N3 – scale in direction of normal formed by N1, N2, and N3 . Origin can be a node or a XYZ location . Elements/Nodes can be copied while scaling

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 74 Element Tools→ Transform (Transform) Purpose: transform nodes/elements/parts from one coordinate system to another . From – pick 3 nodes (first set of P1,P2,P3) to define a starting system . To – pick 3 nodes (second set of P1,P2,P3) to define a destination system . P1-P3 buttons launch Create Position interface . Elements can be copied while transforming

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 75 Element Tools → Smooth Purpose: smooth a mesh to improve element quality . Use General Selection interface to select elements . Specified nodes can be locked to prevent movement . Nodes along feature angles are not moved . Boundary nodes can be fixed or free . User specified number of smoothing iterations can be applied . Nodes can be projected back to geometry after smoothing

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 76 Element Tools → Part Trim Purpose: trim a mesh using a curve . Parts – first, choose the parts to be trimmed . Trim Curves – second, select curves for trimming . Trim Methods (projecting curves to mesh)... • Closest 3D projection • Vector projection (along a specified vector)

 Create a surface  Surface mesh  2Line mesh  Part trim  Model transform (rotate)  Save a keyword file

. Example Keyword Input form for *PART

Keyword type List of existing keywords of this type

. Keyword Input form buttons

Always click first when creating a new card Commit changes Draw entity in the graphics window Delete/Undelete Popup RefBy interface selected keyword

Open interface to pick data directly from model Set all entries to Create fresh keyword Default values using default values

Exit keyword editing form

. Keyword Input form controls

Card Number

Parameter Names Link Button

Parameter Values Drop-down Menu

. Other Keyword Input form features • Blue parameter titles can be clicked to display description in bottom text area (see below) • Red parameters indicate that additional cards may be displayed depending on the parameter value

User comments can be entered here

Click in any field above to display description here (same information found in LS-DYNA Keyword Manual)

. All LS-DYNA keywords are accessible through Keyword Manager tree list (over 900 total) . Keywords that exist in the current model are shown in Blue . Click All to display all keywords (or click Model to display only those that exist in the current model) . Expand the tree and double-click to edit a keyword (opens Keyword Input Form)

. Right click on a keyword in the keyword tree opens up the Deletion and Transfer menu . Keyword data can be deleted by all or by IDs . A keyword data can be transferred to another similar keyword data, common fields will be preserved, missing fields will need to be entered. e.g. . *ELEMENT_SHELL_BETA to *ELEMENT_SHELL_THICKNESS

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 85 Model → Entity Interface A uniform interface to deal with LS-DYNA entities that can be shown graphically . Show – to show the entities . Create – to create the entity . Modify – modify the existing entities . Delete – delete entities . Write entity data to a file . General selection is used whenever it is possible for selecting the entities

Arrow to collapse this area

. Show *SET_{OPTION} . Create *SET_{OPTION} • OPTIONS – NODE, BEAM, DISCRETE, PART, SEGMENT, SHELL, SOLID, THICK SHELL • Select entities using General Selection interface . Modify *SET_{OPTION} • Sets must be shown before they can be modified . Delete *SET_{OPTION} . Write *SET_{OPTION} to a file

. Show *BOUNDARY_SPC_{OPTION} • Label – None/Symbol/Detail • Local coordinate systems will be shown if used • Match – Filter by constrained DOFs . Create *BOUNDARY_SPC_{OPTION} • OPTIONS – NODE, NODE_SET • Use General Selection interface to select nodes • Activate constrained DOFs • Use global or local coordinate system . Modify *BOUNDARY_SPC_{OPTION} . Delete *BOUNDARY_SPC_{OPTION}

. Show *CONSTRAINED_NODAL_RIGID_BODY . Create *CONSTRAINED_NODAL_RIGID_BODY • OPTION – SPC • Use General Selection interface to select nodes • Set additional flags . Modify *CONSTRAINED_NODAL_RIGID_BODY . Delete *CONSTRAINED_NODAL_RIGID_BODY

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 89 Model → Display Entity Purpose: visualize model entities (keywords) other than nodes and elements (which are displayed by default) . Available options include… • *BOUNDARY_{OPTION} • *CONSTRAINED_{OPTION} • *INITIAL_VELOCITY_{OPTION} • *LOAD_{OPTION} • *RIGIDWALL_{OPTION} • *SET_{OPTION} . Use while post-processing by loading d3plots followed by the corresponding keyword file

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 90 Model → Part Data There are 7 functions in the Part Data dialog: . Show – show existing part data . Create – create new part data . Mod – modify existing data . Sear – search parts by parameters . Assign – assign part data properties . Prop – edit properties of part data . Replace – replace a part with another part

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 91 Model → Part Data . Replace – replace a part in one model with another part from another model . The second model can be loaded with the “Load” button

Replace this part with another part that has finer mesh

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 92 Model → Reference Check (Attach) Purpose: identify entities that are attached to other model entities . Initial attachment set can be all visible or as selected (using General Selection interface) . Attachment set can grow By Part or By Element . Final attachment set can be written to a file

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 93 Model → Renumber Purpose: renumber and offset model entities . By Keyword – Entities can be renumbered/offset by Keyword • ID range can be specified • Entities can be picked using the General Selection interface . By Part – Parts/Elements/Nodes can be renumbered/offset by Part . By Selected – Parts/Elements/Nodes can be renumbered/offset by Selected

Purpose: switch between loaded models, view multiple models, perform keyword comparison . Select – display selected model(s) . Trans – translate a model (for visualization only, useful for side-by-side animation) . Remove – unload a model . Info – show model summary

Purpose: compare two similar LS-DYNA keyword input files that have minor differences . Disregards keyword order, unlike other compare/difference software . Normalizes data to ignore differences below a certain tolerance . Provides a summary only when a large number of differences are detected

. Allow multiple windows to display multiple models or same model with different views Right click windows to . Configure with 2x1, 1x2, or 2x2 splits activate windows to be focus and set as main window

Turn on Draw All Area to draw all windows, also true with most operations like AC, blank a part, blank element, fringe, etc.

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 97 Application → Model Checking Element Quality Check: provides general idea of the quality of the finite element model Define allowable value, LS-PrePost will show no. of elements that violate the allowable. The violated elements can be saved into general selection buffers Different checking method for different element types

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 99 Application → Model Checking Comprehensive LS-DYNA keyword data check, to indicate if the keyword data will or will not fail in LS-DYNA run

. Output Version – 960/970/971 (only change if using an old version of LS-DYNA) . Renumber/Offset – can renumber or offset before saving . BySubSystem – activate to save subsystems to separate files (not visible unless model contains subsystems) . Advanced... – additional options (see next slide)

. Keyword order can be customized . Keywords can be selectively omitted . Title, Field Names, and Comments can be omitted . Parameter names can be output instead of actual values

. Output Version – 960/970/971 (only change if using an old version of LS-DYNA) . Keywords can be selectively output using the Advanced Setting interface

 Mesh model  Assign material and property  Apply mass, constraint and velocity  Rigid wall creation  Define spot welding  Save a keyword file  Model comparison

. The Animation controls are displayed when d3plots are loaded. If the animation interface is closed, it can be restored by clicking the Anim render button.

Final State States per Increment Initial State

Activate Eigen Current State Mode Animation

Control Speed Current Time Loop / Play Once Control State

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 106 Post → Fringe Component Purpose: to select a component for fringing . Stress – regular stress components . Ndv – nodal displacements and velocities . Result – resultant stress components . Strain – regular strain components . Misc – pressure, temp, shell thickness, etc... . Infin / Green / Almans – infinitesimal, Green-St. Venant, and Almansi strains . S.Rate – strain rates . Residu – residual elastic strains . FLD – forming limit diagram strain components . Beam – beam element forces and stress resultants . CFD – Navier-Stokes fluid components

. Frin – choose rendering type • Frin – default fringing • Isos – iso-surfaces for solid • Lcon – line contours • XFrn – fringe max value through all states • FMes – fringe color on the mesh • Expr – user define expression . Max – location of shell surfaces • Low / Mid / Upp – lower, mid-plane, and upper • Max / Ave / Min – maximum, average, minimum • Ipt – shell integration point • Bpt – beam integration point . Glob – coordinate system • Glob / Loca – global or local

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 108 Post → Fringe Range Purpose: control fringe and iso-surface ranges . Dynamic – min/max adjusted for each time state . Static – same min/max for all the states . User – custom min/max for all the states . Show – show elements within the specified range . Entire Model – legend based on entire model . Active Parts Only – legend based on displayed parts . Active Elements Only – legend based on displayed elements only

. Reverse Colors – reverse legend colors . Ident Min / Max – identify min and max elements by ID (user defines number of entities to identify) . Lower / Upper – set color for out-of-range elements . Levels – customize number of fringe levels . Palette – allows colors to be modified

. Drawing XY curves for History/ASCII/Binout/XYPlot

. Title – modify main, axis, legend, and curve titles

. Attr – modify curve attributes (symbol, color, width, style)

. Filter – filter curves (SAE, Butterworth, COS, etc...)

. Save – write curves to file (.crv, Keep, XY Pairs, .csv, .xml)

. Oper – perform curve operations (integrate, sum, invert, etc...)

. New XYPlot interface puts plots in the Main window . Multiple plots on a page / multiple pages . Plots from one port can be easily moved or copied to another port

. Right-click on a Port to Delete it or launch the Control interface

. Control interface allows plots to be customized

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 116 Post → History Purpose: plot time history data (from d3plots) . Global – energies and kinematic data for full model . Part – energies and kinematic data for parts . Nodal – kinematic data for nodes . Element – stress and strain data for elements • Value – set to element value or min/max value for the part • E-Type – choose element type to plot history • E-Axes – global or local • Surface – choose shell location (through-thickness) . Int Pt – integration point data . Scalar – plot scalar value that is being fringed (choose component in Fcomp interface)

. Standard plotting options... • Plot – plot selected value in current Plot Window • New – plot selected value in new Plot Window • Padd – add selected value to current Plot Window • Raise – bring forward all open plot windows • Pop – open and bring forward all closed plot windows . Interfaces that use these plot functions... • History • XYPlot • ASCII • Binout • FLD • Measure • Section > Force

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 118 Post → ASCII Purpose: create XY-Plots from ASCII output files . ASCII File Operations... • File – browse and load ASCII file from any directory • Load – load selected file type from current directory • Unload – unload files from memory • All – select all items in the list • Clear – clear selected items • Rev – reverse selection • Info – show information on the loaded ASCII file • Multiple Select – plot multiple curves at once when multiple files are loaded (using File option above)

. ASCII Sub-branches... • Lists all data available in the selected ASCII file • Some ASCII files have special toggles that can be used to process data... . MATSUM, SECFORC, SPCFORC, NODFOR, BNDOUT, SLEOUT, and GCEOUT – [Total] combine multiple ASCII item selections . ABSTAT – [Airb/Mat] select airbag/material ID . ELOUT – [Clrcp] clear component list . ELOUT – [Stress/Strain/Beams] . DEFORC – [Trans/Rotat] force and moments . NODFOR – [Group] combine nodal forces of the group . NODOUT – [HicCsi] open HIC/CSI pre-filter options . RBDOUT – [Local] plot in local coordinate system . SPCFORC – [Force/Momt] force and moments

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 120 Post → XYPlot Purpose: create and manipulate XY-Plots (all saved XY data is automatically added to the file list) . File – show list of all loaded XY-Plot files . Window – show list of all XY-Plot windows . Add – import XY data (use CRV, CSV, XY formats) . Remove – remove files from list . Info – display number of data points . Show – show selected plot . Cross – create cross plot (e.g., combine Force/Time and Disp/Time to create Force/Disp) . Curve Clip – clip curve . Interpolate – modify number of points in curve

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 121 Post → Binout Purpose: plot data from binout files . Binout contains same data as ASCII files but in binary format . Set BINARY=2 on *DATABASE_{OPTION} to generate binout file . Load – load binout file (multiple binout files can be loaded) . Unload – unload binout file . Save – save binout branch in ASCII format . Done – exit the Binout interface

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 122 Post → Follow Purpose: define a reference point or plane for animation and fringing relative displacement . Animation usage... • Pick node(s) to define reference point or plane • Click Apply • Play animation . To fringe relative displacement... • Pick node(s) to define reference point or plane • Click Apply • Go to Page 1: Fcomp • Select Ndv • Select “rx-disp”, “ry-disp”, “rz-disp”, or “r-result disp”

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 123 Post → Trace Purpose: trace nodal displacements . Use General Selection interface to select nodes . Set width and color of trace line . Select state to begin trace . Output trace in several formats... • *DEFINE_CURVE • Coordinate history • *BOUNDARY_PRESCRIBED_MOTION_NODE

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 124 Post → State Purpose: select/overlay animation states or display mulitple states in a grid . Select – display the selected state or create state overlays (with customized rendering type) . Inactive – make states inactive (remove from animation playback) . Delete – delete states (delete d3plot files if possible) . Multistate – display multiple states in a grid

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 125 Post → Output Purpose: output post-processing data . Some available formats... • LS-DYNA Keyword • Nastran • Dynain ASCII • ASCII and Binary STL . Active Parts Only – write only displayed parts . Entire Model – write entire model (use check boxes to control exactly which entities are written) . St No – Controls which state is written

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 126 Post → Vector Purpose: create vector plots (similar to fringing) . d3plot (binary plot) options... • Shell Normal • Displacement • Velocity • Principal Stress • Principle Strain . intfor (interface force file) options... • Force • Pressure • Surface Shear

. X, Y, and Z components for displacement, velocity and force can be selected . Range settings... • Dynamic – min/max adjusted for each time state • Static – same min/max for all the states • User – custom min/max for all the states • Show – show vectors within the specified range . Display settings... • SF – set vector size scale factor • Whole – display vectors for the whole model • Part – display vectors for a specific part • Area – display vectors for a user defined area • El/Node – display vectors for specific elements/nodes

LS-PrePost Intro | 2018 ©2018 Livermore Software Technology Corporation 128 Model → Section Plane Purpose: visualize section planes or take measurements . Section plane options... • FixS – section plane is fixed in space • FixM – section plane is fixed to the model (3Nds only) • Lagr – section plane is lagrangian type . Plane definition options... • 1p+NL – base point + normal direction • N1-N2 – n1 defines base point, n1 to n2 defines direction • 3Nds – 3 nodes define the plane • 2Nds+D – 2 nodes + direction define the plane • BasePt/BaseNd – enter XYZ or select node as base point • NormX/NormY/NormZ – set direction cosines • Centroid – make centroid of model the base point • Reset – reset and clear plane definition

. Additional options... • No. of Cut/Distance - divide model along the plane normal direction • Right/Left Arrows – move the plane forward/backward • MP Anim – animate the section • Upd Bspt – update base point with current position • Clear Kpsc – clear all kept section cuts from memory

. Additional options... • Project View – view section normal to section plane • Off/Clip – turn clipping planes off/on • Kp Cuts – keep and display all section cuts • Clr – clear all section cuts (keep only the last cut) • Cut – perform section cut • Options – display additional section plane options • Crush – open crush/intrusion interface • Model – reset display to full model view • Meas – open section cut measurement interface • Line – open line plot interface • Force – open section force interface • Save – open interface to save/load planes (to file) • Done – exit the Section Plane interface

. “Options” Interface • ShowPl – show section plane on/off • 3DOutline – show solid part outline after cut • ShMesh – show section plane as mesh • Line Width – set section cut line width • Line Color – set section cut line color • Color/Cut – use different color for each cut instead of different color for each part • Thickness – draw section cut with thickness • VP – draw vector on section cut • Write – write section cut to file in selected format (Keyword, VGA, or IGES) • Curr State – set current state for writing

. “Crush” Interface – measure distance from node to plane (intrusion plotting) • Line Width – Intrusion plot line width • Line Color – Intrusion plot line color • PlotType – select history plot type • Node ID – can be picked or keyed in . “Line” Interface – plot fringe values at section cut along the length of the cut • Mainly used for metal stamping • Must load fringe value (using Fcomp) and perform cut first • Pick a part for the line plot

. “Force” Interface – calculate and plot section values • Forces • Moments • Area • Centroid . “Meas” Interface – section plane measurements • Coordinate • Distance • 3Pt-Angle • 3Pt-Radius • 2Ln-Angle • Measure can be done between any two cuts

. Configuration files • Lsppconf – record general configuration parameters, user the pull down menu “Setting”->”Configuration Settings” to set parameters • Lspplasttouch – record last session windows size, dialog location, file path, etc. • Configuire_Toolbar.cfg – record toolbar configurations • .lspp_recent – record recently used files and their locations . Configuration file location (each version of LS-PrePost has its own directory) • Windows – C:\Users\uname\AppData\Roaming\LSTC\LS-PrePostx.x

• Linux - $HOME/LSTC/LS-PrepostX.x

. F1 launches Function Key interface shown below (shows layout of the function keys) . Except for F1 and F10, all other function keys can be programmed to act as a button . Also, a command file with the name F#.cfile can be called using F# (place file in current working directory) . Function keys can be customized in the configuration file (lsppconf)

 Animation interface  Fringe (contour) plotting  Time history/ASCII data plotting  Section cut  Cross plotting  Vector draw